Whether or not you’re legally required to have business insurance depends on your particular business. Employers’ liability is a legal requirement for most businesses that have staff, while other types of insurance, such as professional indemnity, may be required by regulatory bodies.

What types of business insurance are required by law in the UK?

The only type of business insurance that is mandatory under UK law is employers’ liability cover, which is a legal requirement for most businesses that employ staff, even on a casual basis.

However, you may find that regulators require you to have certain types of insurance in order to operate. This effectively means that those insurances will be mandatory for particular professions. Solicitors, accountants and some healthcare professionals, for example, are required to have professional indemnity insurance.

It’s also possible that you won’t be able to sign contracts without having certain types of insurance in place. Whenever you take on a piece of work you should see if your client has any requirements regarding insurance and check that you have that particular cover in place.

Even if you find that there is no compulsory insurance for your particular business, it’s worth considering taking out a policy anyway. Insurance can cover you against mistakes, accidents, theft, damage and legal fees, making sure you can keep running even when things go wrong.

You can find out more about business insurance or start a quote.

Popular trades we insure

At Simply Business we insure all kinds of trades like:

• Builders insurance
• Catering insurance
• Cleaning insurance
• Contractor insurance
• Hairdressing insurance
• Home baking insurance
• Online retailer insurance
• Pub insurance
• Public liability insurance for security guards
• Restaurant insurance
• Roofers insurance
• Takeaway insurance

Is your profession not listed? When you run a quote you can select your trade from over 1,000 options.